


Love Me Little

by Mara



Series: TharnType Corporate AU [1]
Category: TharnType the Series (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Future, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-30
Updated: 2020-02-04
Packaged: 2021-02-19 13:07:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,064
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22478206
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mara/pseuds/Mara
Summary: Tharn is pleasantly surprised to find a strange man in his company apartment — wearing a bath towel! He isn't interested in Type’s sob story. He's late for a party and Type will be perfect as his ready-made date!Type's completely bewildered...he thought pretending to be a loving couple would be easy, but the chemistry between him and Tharn is explosive! He's also left with no doubt that what Tharn wants, he gets, and it seems he wants him — badly. How can he, inexperienced and nervous, handle his lethal brand of desire?
Relationships: Tharn Kirigun/Type (TharnType)
Series: TharnType Corporate AU [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1624792
Comments: 59
Kudos: 427





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This alternate universe is based on the summary of a romance novel by Sara Craven, titled “His Untamed Innocent.”

Type sighed in relief as he stepped out of the shower. His first week of work had been a killer and it was topped off by his first business travel. He hadn’t even gotten a company card. Hell, he still wasn’t sure where the bathrooms were on the 8th floor and he’d already been sent two hours away through Bangkok traffic to get signatures on various papers.

At least the company had apartments so he wasn’t staying in some skeevy hotel booked at the last minute. One night here and another day at the office tomorrow and he could head home for a day off.

Toweling his hair, he stepped out of the bathroom only to nearly get run down by a man pulling a bag behind him. The man barely paused long enough to eye him from head to toe with a grin. “Aren’t _you_ a gift from the gods?”

“What?” Type hurriedly wrapped the towel around his waist. “What are you doing—?”

“Clearly someone forgot to mention this apartment was taken, but that’s not important.”

“I think it’s very important!” Type said.

“What’s important is that you’re exactly what I need right now.” The man dropped his bag on the floor.

Type stared at him in horror as he started to unbutton his shirt. 

“You’ve got a suit with you, I assume.”

“I…yes?” Type tore his gaze away from the broad chest being revealed.

“Great. We need to leave in half an hour.”

“Leave for where?”

“I’ve got a party tonight and I need a date.”

“Who the hell are you?”

The man grinned as he pulled his undershirt over his head. “Oh, didn’t I mention? I’m Tharn Kirigun.”

Oh shit. A company VP was getting undressed in front of him and talking about a date. Type almost dropped the towel. “Er, Mr. Kirigun, I’m not—”

“Do you work for ST Industries?”

“Yes?”

“Should that be a question?”

“I mean yes, I work for ST Industries. I started this week.” Type swallowed. “Sir, I really need this job.”

The other man shrugged. “I’m sure. I don’t really care what your sob story is. Do I need to call your manager or are you going to put on that suit?”

“I…right, the suit.” Type swallowed.

“Oh yeah, call me Tharn.” He flashed his bright white smile again. “After all, we’re dating. Get dressed.”

Type stumbled toward the closet, grabbed the hanger holding his suit, and snatched underwear from the drawer while trying to keep the towel around his waist. He didn’t look at Mr. Kiri…Tharn, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw the man watching him in apparent appreciation.

With a shudder, he ducked into the bathroom and firmly closed the door behind him, leaning against it.

* * *

Tharn barely suppressed his laughter at the deer-in-headlights look on the kid. Damn, he was definitely going to the special hell for this and he’d be lucky if HR didn’t send him off for a month of training about sexual harassment, but it was an emergency.

Since the kid—oh, he hadn’t actually gotten his name—anyway, the kid had been traumatized enough, so he quickly changed into the fresh suit he’d brought with him.

When the bathroom door opened, Tharn turned halfway through tying his tie. There had definitely been something he’d been about to say but whatever it is was had been completely erased from his brain. Erased and replaced with the image of the kid (an employee, damn it) in a suit. He’d looked damn good in just a towel but fuck, in a suit he was…he was…breathtaking.

Crossing his arms, the kid raised an eyebrow at him. “Sir, I mean, Tharn, are you going to tell me where we’re going now?”

Tharn swallowed and kicked his brain back into gear. “It’s a fundraiser.”

“And why do you need a date?” The scowl that accompanied this was even _more_ adorable, which shouldn’t be legal.

“What’s your name?” Tharn asked.

“Type Thiwat. Now why do I have to be your date?”

“Ha! Have you ever been to a fundraiser?” 

“No, of course not. Who goes to fundraisers except snooty rich p—” Type went slightly pale. “Er…”

“You’re right,” Tharn said, waving a hand. “They’re full of snooty rich people. They’re especially full of snooty rich people looking for a snooty rich husband.”

“Ah.” Type relaxed, seeming to understand.

“I don’t have the time or patience to fend off every irritating, simpering person in the room tonight. Which is where you come in.”

Type stared at him for a long moment and Tharn resisted the urge to either make a face at him or strike a pose. “Fine, I’ll do it.”

Tharn felt a pang of guilt. “I wouldn’t have really called your manager.”

“Whatever. Will the booze at least be good at this thing?”

Laughing, Tharn stepped forward and threw an arm around Type’s shoulders. “Yeah, that I can promise you.”

* * *

Type sat in the back of the limousine next to _Tharn Kirigun_ and tried to calm down. All he had to do was stand next to him and look decorative for an evening. Maybe smile lovingly a few times or something. How hard could it be?

And then Tharn looked at him with that shit-eating grin and a significant portion of Type wanted nothing more than to lean in and kiss him. How was it possible for a man to be that good-looking?

“So,” Tharn said, giving him an unreadable look. “I guess we need to know something about each other if we’re going to pull this off.”

Type nodded, feeling like an idiot. “Um, I know that you’re a VP. The youngest VP in Bangkok.” Tharn raised an eyebrow at that. “There was an article in the paper,” Type pointed out.

“Oh, right. Yeah, I had a lot of luck. Lot of privilege. Graduated college early, benefited from the fact my brother knew the president, so I didn’t exactly start at the bottom.”

Type looked down at his hands. “I worked my way through college part-time. I just graduated two years ago.”

“Your parents didn’t help?”

“They died when I was 14. My aunt couldn’t afford to help very much, and then she died when I was 18.”

“Ah. Sorry.”

Type shrugged a shoulder, wanting to be done with that part of the conversation. “Not much else of note. I started working for ST just this past week. I’m supposed to report to the local office in the morning to track down a bunch of people to get their signatures on a contract.”

“The American deal?”

Type nodded.

“I wasn’t involved, but the company’s going to make a lot of money off it.”

“Yeah.”

“Are we paying you decently?” Tharn asked.

“No.” Type didn’t even have to pause.

“Not surprising with an attitude like that!” Tharn couldn’t help a snicker.

“Jerk.” Type said it automatically, then sucked in a breath, looking at Tharn.

Laughing, Tharn leaned back against the leather seat. “Look, if this is going to work, you can’t be on edge. I swear that I won’t hold anything you say tonight against you, okay? Call me names or whatever you want if it helps.”

“Okay.”

“Besides, name-calling is kind of a turn-on for me.” Tharn smirked at him.

Type felt himself flush and turned to look out the window.

* * *

Tharn glanced quickly over the crowd as he tucked Type’s arm into his and towed him along. Leaning over, he whispered in his ear. “Everyone knows I’m very hands-on, so you’ll have to deal with it.”

Type nodded, obviously more flustered by the crowd and the noise and the flashes of jewelry and a photographer than he was by the man holding him close.

With a grin, Tharn led him toward the nearest bar. Everything would look better once they’d had a drink.

Of course, they were waylaid no more than a few meters into the room. “Tharn, it’s good to see you!” 

Tharn managed a mostly real smile at the call from his semi-rival at HT Trading. “Pang, nice to see you.” He squeezed Type’s arm. “Darling, why don’t you go get us both a drink?” The look Type gave him was anxious and Tharn nearly smacked his own forehead. Right. Of course, the kid didn’t know what he drank. “A red tonight, I think.”

“I’ll be right back,” Type said with a wai to Pang.

Pang turned to watch him go, then turned back with an eyebrow raised.

“Just don’t,” Tharn said, already exhausted.

“You brought a boy toy? Into the lion’s den?” Pang shook his head in mock dismay. 

“He’s not a boy toy,” Tharn snapped. 

“With that ass? Hey, I’m not even into guys and I can tell it’s a good ass.”

“Fuck you.” Tharn kept an eye on Type. He really needed that wine to get through the evening. 

“No thanks. I’ll stick with the ladies.” Pang took a slug of his own drink. “I’m surprised to see you here tonight.”

“There’s a lot to do,” Tharn said. “And I don’t know the next time I’ll get this many high-rollers into one room with enough booze I can get something out of them.”

“Fair enough. Good luck.” Pang grinned. “On this, at least. Bad luck next week when we bid on the office park.”

“Yeah yeah.” Tharn smiled as Type came back with a glass for him. “Thank you.”

Type couldn’t quite meet his eyes but he smiled, standing close to him. Tharn found himself swaying even closer, but as he’d said, he was known to be very touchy-feely, so it made sense that he’d want to touch the adorable boy he’d brought with him. He just had to remember that it wasn’t real.

Tharn sipped at his wine. It looked like Type had gotten himself Sang Som and good for him. He probably couldn’t afford to buy the good stuff, so he might as well enjoy it if he was going to be dragged around this stifling room.

Waving goodbye to Pang, Tharn tried to figure out how many people in this crowd he needed to speak to and how many he needed to avoid. Both numbers were higher than he wanted to think about, which was headache-inducing.

As they walked, they were stopped every few feet by yet another man or woman trying to flirt with him and Type quickly learned how to lean into Tharn’s embrace and make it obvious they were together. Tharn found himself reluctant to let go, once he’d slipped an arm around Type’s waist, so he decided to go with it.

It seemed to work, because after about 20 minutes, the most awful of the clingy people seemed to have gotten the message. Tharn sighed in relief and steered Type toward one of the people he actually _wanted_ to speak to.

* * *

It was all Type could do to not slap some of the people approaching them. Fuck, how shameless could they be? Half of them looked like they’d strip in the middle of the room if it got them Tharn. So gross. He glared at a woman whose dress appeared to be painted on as she took a step toward them, causing her to recoil. Ha! Take that, bitch. He’s mine.

Which is when he remembered that Tharn Kirigun was _not_ in fact his. Right. Too bad, because it was…nice to be held like this. Just held with no expectation of anything else.

Tharn pulled him in the direction of an older woman, who didn’t look like one of the shameless people who’d been chasing them around. She greeted them both pleasantly and allowed herself to be introduced to Type with a smile. 

“Before you ask,” she said, holding up a hand, “I’ve already made my donation and it was sizeable.”

“I know,” Tharn said with a grin. “I’m not looking for money.”

Type wasn’t sure what was going on, so he took a sip of his drink and tried to look inconspicuous.

She and Tharn looked at each other for a long moment and then she sighed. “No promises. Just tell me.”

“Volunteers.”

“Volunteers?” She looked skeptical. “You want me to volunteer?”

“No,” Tharn laughed. “Well, if you want to, but that’s not what I’m talking about. I mean your employees.”

“Giving them time off?”

“No. Paying them to volunteer. Not just for this organization, but for the group of their choice.”

She took a sip of her own drink, obviously playing for time as she looked at Tharn. “You want me to spend money so that part of their workweek goes to a charity.”

“Yes.” He didn’t look at all cowed by her tone. “You know that several hours every week are wasted in non-productive activity anyway.”

“Hmmph.”

“And beating your workers won’t change that.”

Pursing her lips, she scowled at him. “I don’t beat my workers.”

“You know what I mean. I think you’ll find that productivity and profitability actually increase.”

“Is that what ST Industries has found?”

“In our small pilot project, yes.” Tharn was deadly serious now. “But I need your help to expand this. Your influence could be the turning point.”

“I’ll think about it,” she said.

“That’s all I can ask.” He gave her a wai, clearly having some actual respect for this person, as opposed to most of the rest of the room.

Tharn took Type’s hand and pulled him away, scanning the room with a serious expression. Type took the opportunity to study the man, who had hidden depths. He wasn’t here for business reasons, was he? Or at least not only for business reasons. 

“I need something to eat,” Tharn said over his shoulder. “How about you?”

“Yeah.” Actually, he couldn’t remember when he’d last eaten, so food was probably a good idea if he was going to be drinking.

They made a beeline for a buffet table, managing to avoid any further conversations, and Type raised an eyebrow at the fancy presentation. 

Leaning on his shoulder, Tharn surveyed the spread. “The shrimp and chicken will be good, the duck and beef will be vile. The pâté over there is better than it looks. Don’t get anything that comes in a bowl or fluted glass because you need an extra hand to hold it once you’re done and they fall over really easily. Oh, and the fried things will be cold and soggy even though they’re sitting over a flame.”

Barely holding in his laughter, Type grinned sideways at him. “How many of these things have you attended?”

“You have no idea.” Tharn rolled his eyes. 

They meandered down the table and Tharn recommended some foods that turned out to be amazing. But it was difficult to focus on the flavor as Tharn insisted on feeding many of them to him. At first, Type refused to open his mouth but then he made the mistake of meeting Tharn’s gaze.

Tharn’s eyes had narrowed and were focused only on him, which was…it should have been stifling but it was honestly just hot. Leaning forward, Tharn whispered. “Let me in.”

And to his own surprise, Type found himself opening his mouth so Tharn could pop in a piece of chicken.

Tharn smiled. “Thank you.” His voice was low and went straight to Type’s gut.

Type could hardly breathe and he certainly didn’t know what to say, so he let Tharn feed him. It was just part of the camouflage, right?

* * *

Oh fuck, Tharn thought. How was Type so amazing? They’d only just met and there was already enough chemistry between them he was surprised they hadn’t set anything on fire.

Type was such a combination of charming and grumpy, it was frankly irresistible. And Tharn wasn’t all that used to having to resist when he wanted something, so he kept teasing Type.

The best part was that sometimes Type let him get away with it (the image of him obediently opening his mouth for food was going to stick with him a very long time) but Type pushed back when he wanted to.

“Don’t call me ‘darling’,” he’d growled earlier.

“Sweetie pie?” Tharn gave him a sickly sweet smile.

“No!”

“Baby? Honey? Cutie?”

“You’re hopeless.” Type scowled. “No stupid pet names or I’ll abandon you to that lady in green who looks like she wants to eat you alive.”

Tharn shuddered, knowing exactly who Type was talking about. “Never mind, I’ll be good.”

“That’s better.” Type nodded, looking appeased.

How was he so _adorable_? It was all Tharn could do to not squish his cheeks.

* * *

Type had a mouthful of some kind of shrimp thing when the next attempt on Tharn occurred, which was why the man in the…was that a lopsided tuxedo? Anyway, the guy and his huge and ugly cross earring were draped over Tharn’s shoulders before Type had a chance to react.

Type almost spit out the food in shock and Tharn looked seriously irritated as he tried to untangle himself from the human octopus.

“Lhong, stop it,” Tharn said through gritted teeth.

Lhong just laughed. “C’mon, Tharn, you know I’m more fun than this guy and his off-the-rack suit.”

“At least he didn’t make me _pay_ for the suit.”

“Oh honey, it was just the once.”

“And the vacation. And the car.”

Type finally swallowed what was in his mouth and almost threw his plate at the nearest table. Stepping forward, he dipped his head to be level with Lhong’s. “Get your hands off him _now_ before I have to remove you.”

Lhong fucking pouted like he thought it was cute on him. It wasn’t. “Don’t talk to me that way.”

“I’ll talk to you however I want.” Type was almost snarling now. “Go ahead and make fun of my suit but don’t touch him without his permission.”

Lhong let go and stepped back, dusting off his arms as if Type had grabbed him. “Really, Tharn. I didn’t know you associated with such low-class people.”

Tharn took a breath and stepped closer to Type, giving him a pleased smile before he turned to confront Lhong. “I suppose you never really knew me. Just my money.”

Nose in the air, Lhong stalked off.

Tharn sighed.

“He seems nice,” Type said with a snort.

“Mmm. In my defense, he was very good in bed.”

Type was glad he wasn’t still eating or he’d have spit it out on Tharn’s shoes. “Asshole.”

Chuckling, Tharn slung an arm around his shoulder. “C’mon, I think we both need another drink.”

“Damn straight.”

* * *

Tharn was frankly charmed by how Type had taken to his role as boyfriend. He just kept getting better, surprising and pleasing Tharn. He’d even taken to adding a few comments about specific charitable organizations doing good in the community, adding just the right note to several conversations. He seemed to have a sixth sense for which ones would appeal to the people they spoke to.

It was unfortunate that Type would probably react badly to being kissed soundly in the middle of a crowd, because the temptation was getting stronger. His mood much higher than he’d expected several hours ago, Tharn settled for tugging Type close and feeling him fit perfectly against his side. He glanced around the room, looking for his next target.

“Oh, fuck me sideways,” Tharn whispered as he caught sight of a very familiar face coming toward him.

Type startled. “What?”

“Hold tight,” he whispered into Type’s ear, “it’s gonna get bumpy. I’ll definitely owe you a favor after this.” Tharn looked from Type toward the man who stopped in front of them. “Hello, San. I can’t say it’s nice to see you.”

San smiled. “You’re always so amusing. It’s lovely to see you, my boy.” He reached out to pat Tharn on the shoulder and before Tharn could even shudder, Type had stepped between them, holding out his hand like a Brit.

Tharn could only stare as San was forced to shake Type’s hand instead of touching Tharn. “Hi, I’m Tharn’s boyfriend. The name is Type.” Type’s voice was sharp.

“Hmm.” San leered at him and held the handshake for several beats longer than was polite. “He always did have good taste.”

“Not always,” Tharn murmured. He saw Type struggling to not laugh at that and reached out to pull Type back toward him. Trouble with HR or not, at this moment, he _needed_ this boy even more than he’d expected at the start of the evening.

San just chuckled and waved at them. “I’ll see you later.” As always, it managed to sound like a threat.

Tharn kept his arms around Type, chin on his shoulder, and the boy let him do it. Eventually, Tharn took a deep breath. “Thank you,” he said, managing to convince his hands to let Type go.

Turning, Type scowled at him. “He’s gross. I assume there’s a reason I couldn’t just punch him?”

Tharn coughed in surprise. “It’s generally not done in these circles,” he said, trying not to grin.

“Too bad. That guy seems like he would look better with a black eye.”

For a moment, Tharn imagined it and he had to admit that Type was right. It was a very appealing image.

* * *

Type followed Tharn through three more conversations that seemed productive, in which he charmed and cajoled very wealthy business owners into thinking about allowing their employees to volunteer for some of their work hours.

“You’re really committed to this,” Type said quietly.

Tharn glanced at him. “Yeah. It’s…someone needs to do it.”

It wasn’t at all what he’d expected, Type thought as he watched Tharn charm an old guy who apparently owned some kind of real estate business. Okay, Tharn was definitely a pushy entitled asshole but he wasn’t a bad guy. And yeah, he was also nice to look at, which didn’t hurt.

There were definitely some rich snooty jerks (and shameless people attacking his fake boyfriend) but some of the people Tharn was talking to were interesting. This was a glimpse into a world he knew nothing about and Type was oddly fascinated by it.

Or maybe it was just fascinating because Tharn did his best to explain things in between conversations. It was difficult to not see everything Tharn did and said as interesting.

* * *

Tharn sighed as he looked over Type’s shoulder to see yet another familiar sight: A tiny adorable young man being towed by two awful adults.

Type caught his expression and tensed. “Don’t tell me there’s another asshole ex-boyfriend coming.”

“No.” Tharn wished he could turn tail and run. “It’s worse. Tar’s a good guy in a bad situation.”

Type gave him a sharp look but didn’t have time to ask anything further before Tar and his dragons…er, parents had arrived.

“There you are, Tharn,” Tharn’s mother trilled. “How silly, it looked like you were trying to avoid us.” 

“Yes. Silly.” If Tharn’s tone was any more deadpan, it would flatten people like an anvil. Tar caught it, of course, and stifled a smile.

Tar’s dad gave Tar a push, causing him to trip forward. Tharn had been expecting something of the sort but before he could catch Tar, Type was there, holding his arm. “You okay?” Type asked.

Tar nodded, looking surprised and pleased. “Yes. Thank you.”

“Hi, I’m Type.” Tharn could see Type’s quick glance at Tar’s parents and he sent up a quick prayer that this evening’s experiences hadn’t exceeded Type’s patience, which he strongly suspected was limited. Luckily, Type chose to just pat Tar on the shoulder gently.

“Tar has missed you _so much_ ,” Tar’s mother said with her usual subtlety. “He couldn’t wait to see you.” 

Tar just stood there, looking embarrassed, as he always did when his mother did this to him.

“Maybe the three of us could hang out,” Type said cheerfully. Everyone else turned to give him varying degrees of a confused expression and Tharn fought the urge to cheer. “Hey, have you seen the new comedy? Y’know, the one with the guy from the game show?” he asked Tar with an air of utter and complete innocence that Tharn might have bought if he hadn’t just spent two hours watching him play the role of boyfriend.

“No, I haven’t,” Tar said, blinking at him.

“That sounds good, then.” Type looked like he was about to explode in good cheer as he wrapped an arm around Tharn and looked up at him adoringly. “I really want to get to know your friends.”

Tar nodded several times, because what else could he do? “It’s good to see you, Tharn.”

“Likewise. We’ll definitely catch up sometime soon. Maybe hang out with Tum as well.”

And Type dragged Tharn away as if he had a destination in mind, barely allowing Tharn to wai a farewell. Tharn could see Tar’s parents looking extremely displeased, which served them right.

When they were far enough away, Type said, “What the hell was that about? I mean, besides the obvious fact that they were literally throwing Tar at you.”

“Long story short, they want him to marry me so I’ll ‘take care of him.’ Tar was ill some years ago, although he’s fine now. But his parents keep him locked up like a princess in a storybook castle.” Tharn scowled.

“Sounds like you wanted to save him.” Type’s tone was neutral.

Tharn sighed. “I wanted to save him, but I didn’t _want_ him. And he didn’t really want me.”

“Difficult as that is to believe,” Type muttered.

That made Tharn chuckle. “Yes. Tar’s in love with someone else but he won’t admit it and that person won’t step forward. So they’re caught in this limbo where everyone is miserable.”

“And his parents are apparently assholes.”

“And his parents are _definitely_ assholes.” 

Type bumped Tharn with his elbow. “Hey, even rich jerks like you can’t fix everything.”

Tharn slipped his arm back around Type’s waist. “I suppose not.”

* * *

Type should have known better than to get separated. There was no way that was going to go well. But he’d needed to pee desperately, so he headed in that direction while Tharn was deep in conversation with the president of an electronics firm, determined to get back to Tharn as quickly as possible.

As always, luck wasn’t with Type. As he exited the bathroom, he nearly ran down the asshole from earlier. San, right? San had the fucking nerve to pretend to look surprised but just how stupid did the man think he was? “Excuse me,” Type muttered.

To his dismay, San took his arm in just the way Tharn had throughout the evening, except that when San did it, it felt…nasty. When Type tried to move away, San’s grip got tighter. Tight enough that it felt like it might leave bruises, but hell if Type was going to give him the satisfaction of wincing in pain, so he let himself be dragged into a side hallway.

“What the hell?” Type growled as San finally let go but blocked his exit back to the main area.

“I just thought we should have a little chat.”

“Not interested.” Type took a step diagonally, but San blocked him. “Seriously, go away.”

“Little boy, you have _no idea_ who you’re dealing with, do you?”

Type glared at him. “I don’t care. As far as I’m concerned, you’re just the hundredth person to try and steal my boyfriend tonight.”

“Hundredth?” San chuckled. “Hardly. In fact, I was the first. I was Tharn’s first and I’m the only one who’s fucked him. You think it’s good getting him inside you? It’s better the other way.”

Face flushed, Type put both hands on the man’s chest and shoved, knocking him back a bit. “Shut up!”

“He was so good for me.” San was almost purring now and Type wanted to vomit. “Begged so prettily on his knees. I bet you’re pretty when you beg too.”

Type couldn’t help the half step backward and shaky note in his voice. “Go to hell.”

San looked him up and down. “Maybe I’ll take you instead since it seems you need a bit of discipline. It’s always more fun to break the willful ones.”

Type couldn’t breathe. He shook his head.

There was a blur in his peripheral vision and then a fist colliding with San’s cheek, knocking him to the ground.

Backing up against a wall, Type focused on staying upright. And then Tharn was there, hands on his shoulders, looking frantic. “Are you okay?”

He was going to nod. Any moment now he was going to nod and stand upright and sneer at the asshole on the floor as they walked by him.

“Type, look at me.” Tharn’s voice was gentle and irresistible. “It’s okay. He won’t get near you again. I promise.”

San was rising to his feet behind Tharn and Type was shaking. San huffed. “Don’t speak for me.”

“I’m not,” Tharn said without turning, his voice very serious as he held Type’s gaze. “I’m promising _you_ , San, that if you get anywhere near my boy again, I won’t just punch you, I’ll _kill you_ and make it look like a regrettable accident.”

San sneered, but he walked away hurriedly.

Tharn pulled Type into a hug. “Fuck, I was worried when I saw him with you. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t.” Type took a few careful breaths. “I knew he was a creep.”

That made Tharn laugh softly. “Yeah. I wish I’d been that perceptive when I was your age. Unfortunately, that’s why I know just how dangerous he is.”

Type hugged Tharn back and thought about San with a younger Tharn. “I should have punched him immediately,” he muttered.

With a sigh, Tharn pulled back and looked at him. “Are you okay now?”

Type flushed, avoiding his eyes. “Yeah.”

“Who hurt you?” Tharn asked abruptly.

“What?” Type tensed.

“Sorry, I just…” Frowning, Tharn stepped back, apparently realizing they were still hugging. “The way you looked just now…it was like how I looked after I broke up with San.”

Type felt his face turn even hotter, like he was on fire, and he stared down at the floor. 

“Does it have to do with why you need this job so badly?”

Type nodded once.

* * *

Tharn had a feeling he was going to be even more homicidal in a moment, but… “Do you want to talk about it?” He wasn’t even sure why, but he really wanted to know.

Type didn’t say anything and just as Tharn was about to tell him never mind and go get him another glass of whiskey, Type looked up. “Were you telling the truth?”

“About what?”

“Not holding whatever I say against me.”

Nodding slowly, Tharn put a hand on Type’s shoulder. “I swear that was the truth. Unless you’re going to tell me you’ve murdered someone or defrauded the company…”

Type shook his head immediately.

“Okay. Then let’s go sit down.” Tharn guided Type to an out-of-the-way corner where he could be reasonably sure they wouldn’t be disturbed.

Type stared down at his hands once they were seated on a bench and Tharn couldn’t resist, reaching out to hold his cold hands. “Tell me.”

“My ex-boyfriend was kind of like San.”

Tharn couldn’t help the convulsive squeeze of Type’s hands.

“Bun liked that I didn’t have any experience.” Type’s voice shook and he cleared his throat before going on. “He liked that I’d been so busy working and studying that I was lonely. He said he wanted to take care of me but he meant control me. He hurt me over and over and he made me want to come back to him anyway.”

This time Type’s voice broke and he let out the most pitiful sob. Tharn pulled him into a hug and held on. “I know. I know what it’s like.”

Type choked out the rest. “I was so confused that it took months for me to realize it wasn’t right. But I finally left.”

“Good.” Tharn held him until he felt Type try to pull back.

Type dashed some tears out of his eyes but barreled on. “He followed me. I had to quit three jobs. I grew up in Chiang Mai, but I came here because I want to disappear in the crowds of Bangkok. Get established so that when he shows up, he can’t sabotage things.” 

Tharn tried to imagine dealing with San without having the protections of his family and his money and his position. “Fuck.”

Type was silent. 

“I’m sorry my asshole ex reminded you of your asshole ex.”

Type managed a small twitch of the lips that could charitably be called a smile. “Not your fault.”

“Well, it’s my fault for dragging you here.”

“I could have said no.”

“Could you?” Tharn sighed. “I was selfish to make you come with me. It’s just that I walked into the apartment thinking about how awful the evening was going to be and you appeared like an answer to my prayer.”

Squirming, Type was clearly embarrassed. “Whatever,” he muttered. “It’s fine.”

Tharn beamed at the bowed head in front of him. He really was ridiculously adorable. Unable to resist, he freed one hand to gently touch Type’s chin and lift his head. “An answer to several prayers, to be honest.”

Type’s eyes were wide, but not frightened now. A little wary, maybe, but not scared. Definitely aroused and extremely sexy.

Tharn leaned forward the last few millimeters and brought their lips together. Type tasted sweet like the sugary whiskey he’d had and spicy like the shrimp and Tharn bit gently at his lower lip to see what he would do.

Type surged forward, almost knocking him over, and Tharn automatically wrapped his arms around Type like they’d done it a thousand times, pulling him onto his lap. Type felt good there, strong and kissing with intent.

Who knows how far they might have gone if the sound of someone walking down the cross hallway hadn’t echoed toward them. Type pulled back, almost falling on the ground, before Tharn dragged him to sit on the bench next to him.

Tharn couldn’t resist putting an arm around Type’s shoulders and pulling him close. Type sighed against his chest.

“I could protect you from Bun,” Tharn said absently after a while.

Type stiffened, pulling back. 

Tharn frowned. “Sorry, I just meant that I could help you talk to HR so if this asshole shows up, they’re ready.”

“Oh.” Type thought about it. “Yes, that would help. That would be a good favor.”

Momentary confusion took over Tharn’s brain until he remembered saying he owed Type a favor. “Ah, that’s just the favor for coming with me tonight. I still owe you a favor for dealing with Lhong and Tar and San.”

Type frowned up at him.

“I think I have an idea what I can do for you.” Tharn smirked as he saw Type’s breathing speed up. Yeah, this would be a win-win. Let them both forget nasty exes and have a great time to boot.

Unblinking and wide-eyed, Type waited.

“C’mon, let’s go back to the apartment. What I have in mind isn’t for public consumption.” Standing he held out a hand, feeling remarkably like he was trying to tame a wild animal.

Slowly, Type took his hand and allowed Tharn to pull Type up and close to him. Tharn just held him for a long moment, letting Type feel him. Several slow breaths later, Tharn felt Type relax against him. “That’s it,” Tharn murmured into his hair. “Shall we go?”

Type nodded and Tharn sent a quick left-handed text to the driver to meet them, unwilling to let go of Type. Then he led Type out of the venue.

The sleek black car pulled up almost immediately and Type got in, followed by Tharn. As the car pulled away, Tharn couldn’t resist any longer, turning Type’s head so he could kiss him again.

Type melted into it like he was born for this. Tharn sighed. The night was already looking up.

Type pushed him back, looking at the driver. “Wait…we…”

“It’s okay.” Tharn chuckled as he caressed Type’s cheek. “He’s seen far worse than some kisses from young masters such as me.”

In the passing streetlights, it was difficult to tell how Type took that, but it looked like that adorable scowl again. “Still…” Type said.

“We have a few minutes until we arrive,” Tharn said. “If you’re not comfortable kissing, I could tell you some of the things I plan to do to you instead.”

“Huh?”

Leaning forward, Tharn whispered. “Tell me if there’s anything that doesn’t sound appealing. Tonight’s about you.”

Type just gaped.

“I was thinking I might suck you off in the shower first. Y’know, to take the edge off.”

They were close enough that Tharn could feel Type’s chest rise and fall. Type made an inarticulate noise.

“Then I’d like to take you to bed and explore your body. Touch you all over with my fingers and my tongue. I’m going to make you feel _so_ good.”

At that, Type startled, calming when Tharn gently stroked his face.

“Have you ever had someone solely focused on your pleasure?” Tharn asked.

Type shook his head slowly.

“None of your exes was worth shit, then.”

“There was just Bun,” Type said, so quietly it was almost inaudible over the car noise.

“Hmm?”

“He was the only one. There was nobody before or after.”

“Oh my.” Tharn had to breathe deeply to calm himself down long enough to get through this car ride. “Well, Chiang Mai’s poor decisions are my gain tonight.”

* * *

Type was spellbound as Tharn weaved a vision of what they might do. But the last word was like a bucket of cold water. _Tonight._ Right. This was a repayment of a favor. Tharn didn’t really want him, he just wanted to thank him.

Pulling back, Type shook his head to dispel the lingering fog of arousal.

“What’s wrong?” Tharn asked.

“You don’t have to.”

“Don’t have to…sleep with you? Let me assure you it’s not a hardship at all.”

“That’s not—”

The car pulled up in front of the apartment building and Tharn led Type in, both silent as they rode the elevator up.

The moment the door closed behind them, Tharn pulled Type close, a hand at his waist and one behind his neck to guide him into a kiss. Against his better judgement, Type kissed him back. Damn it, the man could kiss, moving from light soothing to commanding and back again. Type could barely breathe but it was hard to care.

Without warning, Tharn moved from Type’s mouth to his cheek, his ear, his neck, and all Type could do was gasp for breath and try not to rub against Tharn like a dog in heat. Every touch of Tharn’s lips left a tingle behind until Type couldn’t feel anything else.

When Type worked up the strength to push him away, Tharn let him, dropping his arms and waiting for Type to explain. Why did this asshole seem like he would be such a good boyfriend? It made no sense.

Breathing in, Type focused on keeping his hands off Tharn. “I can’t do just a night. No insult to you, it’s just not my thing.”

“I don’t do relationships.” Tharn crossed his arms and stepped back.

“Now that I’ve met the guys you know, I can’t blame you.”

Tharn couldn’t help it: He laughed. He laughed so hard he had to put his arms around his stomach.

Type huffed at him in irritation. 

“Sorry, that was just…perfect.”

“Whatever.” Type walked away, because he couldn’t stand there and look at Tharn and not kiss him. Leaning against the window, he let his forehead rest on the glass. 

“I can’t be what you want,” Tharn said, his voice pleading. “I can give you an incredible night to remember. But that’s it.”

Type closed his eyes. He wanted this. Who the hell knew why, but he wanted it so fucking much he could barely breathe. But if he went to bed with Tharn, in the morning he’d hate both of them. He shook his head.

* * *

Tharn wanted so badly to stride across the room, take Type in his arms and never let him go. But that was a bad idea. If there was one thing he’d proved in the past few years, it was that he was a shitty partner. Maybe San really had broken him. Maybe being a rich jerk was just permanent. But Type deserved someone better.

“I’m sorry,” Tharn said quietly. 

Type just hunched over the window more.

“I’ll take a shower and then sleep on the couch over here. You take the bed.” It was literally the least he could do. Taking one last look at Type, Tharn turned toward the bathroom.

“I figured out what I want for my other favor,” Type said.

Tharn didn’t turn. “Sure. What is it?” He did owe him and he was sure Type wouldn’t ask for anything unethical or illegal.

“Will you kiss me again?”

“What?” Tharn whirled and found Type had turned from the window to look at him. “But you just…”

“One more kiss like we’re boyfriends. Let me pretend for a minute.” Type’s face was bright red but the brat was strong-willed and he met Tharn’s eyes. “I won’t bother you after that.” Tharn absolutely couldn’t move. He watched as Type finally looked down and away, hands fisting at his sides. “Never mind,” Type said quietly. “I won’t beg.”

Tharn could barely breathe as Type grabbed his bag and started tossing things in it. “Type—”

“I’ll go to a hotel for tonight. But don’t think I won’t charge the company for it, y’know.” He was speaking very fast, almost tripping over his words. “My car’s down in the garage, so I’ll go.”

“No!” Tharn broke his paralysis as it finally got through to his brain that Type was leaving.

It was Type’s turn to freeze, one hand zipping up his overnight bag.

“I don’t want you to leave like this.” Tharn swallowed. “But I don’t do relationships.”

“You could try.”

Tharn stared at Type. It was such a stupid thing to say. Totally naïve and ridiculous and brave and so very everything he’d learned about Type this evening. “If I fail, I might hurt you.”

“I’ve been hurt before.” 

“But you work for me and—”

“Bullshit.” Type glared fiercely and adorably at him, like an angry puppy. “Don’t give me an excuse like that. I don’t care if you’re a fucking VP, we’re in totally different divisions.”

“We barely know each other.”

Type sighed. “How are we supposed to get to know each other if not for dating?”

“Er…” Tharn didn’t actually have a rational answer for that. “I’m kind of an asshole.”

“I know _that_. So am I.”

Tharn didn’t know what to say.

Type was barely holding it together and when all they could do was stare at each other, he gradually deflated like a balloon. “I’ll go. You don’t owe me anything else.”

Tharn watched Type zip up the bag and his heart ached. When Type took a step toward the door, Tharn couldn’t help it. “Wait.”

Shaking his head, Type reached for the door handle. 

“Please.”

Type paused, then turned.

Tharn didn’t even know what he was doing. “You said you won’t beg. But I will.” He dropped to his knees. “Please don’t go.”

Type stared, eyes wide and startled. “What…”

“I’ll try. Maybe I’ll be a shitty boyfriend, but I’ll try.” Tharn couldn’t believe himself but he couldn’t stop the words because he meant them. For the first time in years, he really wanted to try.

“I’m not exactly a prize either.” Type took a step forward.

“In one night, you’ve been ten times better than any previous boyfriend I’ve had.” It was true, Tharn realized. Type had helped Tharn, stuck up for him, protected someone important to him without even knowing what was going on…and was a damn good kisser to boot. “Give me a chance.”

“Ugh.” Type held out a hand to Tharn. “Stand up, idiot.”

Tharn stood, pulling Type close again. “Watch out, I told you that name-calling is a turn-on for me.”

Type rolled his eyes, but he also put his arms around Tharn and tucked himself neatly against him, so that was good.

Who knew, Tharn thought with some amusement, that he’d start the evening with a fake boyfriend and end it with a real one. Sometimes life was just weird. On the other hand, sometimes it handed you a grumpy brat who made you smile.

—end—


	2. This Is Not the Epilogue You're Looking For

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Being head of HR at a large corporation is always challenging.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is, in fact, the epilogue nobody asked for but my brain delivered. I'm working on a serious sequel, but in the meantime have…whatever this is.

Aun thought of herself as being pretty unflappable. You didn’t make it to head of HR at a company like ST Industries without having seen (and fixed) a lot of problems over the years. Yes, she was calm and collected, no matter the disaster that was dumped on her desk, and that’s why she was in charge.

So, when VP of Marketing Tharn Kirigun marched into her office on a Thursday morning, grinning like a madman, she didn’t even roll her eyes. No, she clasped her hands in front of her and asked, “What did you do _this_ time?”

Dropping into one of the visitor’s chairs, he smirked at her. “The good news is that I wasn’t drunk last night and I wasn’t caught kissing the prime minister’s great nephew behind a potted plant.”

“I’m glad to hear it.” She frowned. “Weren’t you at that charity event last night? I didn’t see anything on the news.”

“I would hope this wouldn’t have been on the news.” His smirk faded into a distant smile that she had never seen on his face. “Although I did punch someone.”

Aun waited.

“He won’t be telling anyone about it, though, since I punched him for scaring my boyfriend.”

Aun raised an eyebrow. 

“My boyfriend who started working in our sales division last week.”

Aun allowed herself a sigh. “You’re dating an employee.”

“An employee in another division!” He leaned forward, looking at her with an earnest expression. 

“That’s only slightly better. You know that.” She watched him with the experienced eye of someone who really had seen almost everything. And damn it, he was worried. “Wait, when did you start dating this gentleman?”

For the first time in the years she’d known him, she saw Tharn Kirigun blush. “Last night.”

“Okay,” she said after a moment to collect herself, “we’re going to have to set up some ground rules.”

“Yes, absolutely.” Tharn paused. “It actually gets a little worse.”

“Did you sneak off and marry him last night, perhaps?” At the look on his face, she immediately said, “Not that I’m recommending that!”

“No, I didn’t marry him last night.” He looked down at his hands.

And that was when she knew she was really in trouble. “I can’t help you if you don’t tell me.”

“There’s almost certainly going to be an attempt to get him fired. An ex-boyfriend who’s done that to him at previous jobs.” He met her gaze and oh yes, _that_ was the tough intelligent man she had met on their orientation day at ST. That was the man who had worked his way up to VP in record time and he was serious about this guy.

“He’ll need to tell me as much as he can,” she said gently. “Otherwise I won’t be able to help.”

Tharn nodded. “I’ll bring him by as soon as possible.”

He looked too serious, so she glared at him. “At least it’s not another goat incident.”

Leaning back in his chair, Tharn laughed. “Hey, that one was funny!”

“Not in the slightest. You really do cause me a lot of trouble.”

“But you love me anyway.” He grinned at her, holding out his fist. “Still friends?”

“Still friends.” She bumped his fist. “But don’t you go telling everyone I’m turning into a softy.”

“I would never.” Tharn jumped out of the chair. “You’re the toughest, meanest, cruelest HR person in history. Now I’ll get back to work.”

Aun watched him leave, shaking her head. On the bright side, being Tharn’s friend was rarely boring. She couldn’t wait to meet the guy who had turned Tharn this upside-down in one night.

—end—

**Author's Note:**

> Just for the record, neither San nor Bun is intended to portray a BDSM practitioner. They’re assholes who treat their boyfriends like shit because they can get away with it. I swear, I created Bun and I want to punch him _so badly_ , y’all.
> 
> I'm seriously tempted to write a sequel where Bun shows up, just so Tharn gets to punch him for me. I would feel a lot better.


End file.
